


Dear Corvo

by katling



Category: Dishonored (Video Games)
Genre: Indecision, Introspection, M/M, The Void, having the strangest talk with your daughter, surprising developments
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-12-19
Updated: 2017-05-07
Packaged: 2018-09-09 16:54:22
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 5
Words: 6,324
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8900317
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/katling/pseuds/katling
Summary: For three months, Corvo hasn’t seen the Void or the Outsider. Tonight that changes and Corvo is surprised by the result.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> I just finished a pretty much completionist playthrough of Dishonored 2 and my second Corvo playthrough and this came to mind and I had to write it. It’s set three months after the events in Dishonored 2. I played full stealth for both games, including getting the ghost achievement for almost all missions and not killing a single person. (The dogs and mechanical soldiers don’t count.)

The three months since Corvo had returned from Karnaca and restored Emily to the throne had passed in a blur of meetings and the general, back-breaking work required to repair the damage done by Delilah and her witches. By the time he'd fallen into bed at night during those months, he'd been exhausted and he'd slept soundly. If he'd dreamed, he didn't remember them.

So when he woke to see, not his familiar bedroom, but the blackness of the Void, he was understandably surprised. The Outsider had certainly drawn him into the Void before but only when he was being interesting. He couldn't imagine what there was about his current circumstances that could be deemed as such. Then a frisson of fear ran through him. It could also arguably be said that the Outsider had only appeared to him when there was trouble. Was it happening again? He wasn't sure he could bear it again.

“It has been awhile, hasn't it, dear Corvo?”

Corvo turned to find the black-eyed god standing behind him. The Outsider was standing calmly, his hands clasped behind his back and his head cocked slightly to one side. His expression, always hard to read even at the best of times, seemed curious.

“Why am I here?” Corvo demanded, taking a step towards the enigmatic figure.

Now the Outsider’s expression was easy to read. He seemed surprised and Corvo could have sworn there was a faint edge of hurt there as well.

“Your Empress is saved and sits on her throne once more. Karnaca thrives and prosperity is slowly being restored under the benevolent rule of their new Duke and his council. And Delilah rules in the world of her mind, beloved always.” He paused as if to consider what he had just said. “You surprise me, dear Corvo. I thought Delilah at least would fall under your blade.”

Corvo’s lips thinned. “If that surprises you then you weren't watching closely enough last time.”

The Outsider smiled faintly. “But Delilah was different, wasn't she? She attacked your daughter and what is more, she attacked your pride. The great Lord Protector never saw her threat coming until it was far, far too late.”

Corvo gritted his teeth and clenched his hands into fists. Out of the corner of his eye he could see the black mark of the Outsider standing starkly on the back of his hand.

“And your point is?” he ground out.

The Outsider blinked as though surprised by his reaction. “You let her live when no one would have faulted you had you killed her.” He paused then continued more quietly, “Not even me.”

“You said she possessed a piece of you,” Corvo said with a frown. “Is it… does she…?”

This time the Outsider’s smile was more obvious. “Is that concern? For me?” He waved a hand before Corvo could come up with a reply. “The part of me that she stole was returned when you gave her back her spirit. I am whole.”

Corvo nodded. So this wasn't the Outsider coming to demand an answer as to why Corvo hadn't restored him.

“Then why am I here?”

He was startled when the Outsider looked away.

“I… wished to see you.”

Corvo frowned and watched the Outsider. Had it been anyone else he would have said they were nervous and uncertain but what would a god gave to be nervous and uncertain about? Then the Outsider glanced back at him and the pieces of the puzzle fell into place. The picture was unexpected and baffling but he had seen desire in someone’s eyes before and it was enough to have him take a few steps forward, just enough to close the gap between him. He reached out tentatively and placed his hand against the Outsider's face, cradling it gently. He drew in a sharp breath when the young god turned his head into his touch.

“I…” Corvo started to pull away but the Outsider placed his hand over Corvo’s on his cheek, holding him in place.

They stayed like that for a moment then the Outsider let him so and stepped back. He smiled faintly again and then his face returned to its normal inscrutable expression.

“We will speak again, dear Corvo,” the god said then the Void faded away.

Corvo woke with a start and looked around to see the familiar sights of his bedroom, high in Dunwall tower. He licked his lips and ran a hand down his face. That was not what he’d expected when he’d gone to bed tonight. He threw back the covers and climbed out of bed. Distantly, through the door, he could hear the slow measured tread of the patrolling guards and he gave an absent nod of approval. He pulled on the trousers he’d abandoned when he went to bed and walked over to the credenza to pour himself a glass of wine.

He walked out onto the balcony that overlooked the entry foyer of the tower. His eyes tracked the movements of the guards below but his thoughts were back in the Void and with the Outsider who had so blindsided him. It seemed bizarre and unbelievable here in the real world, that the Outsider might… desire him. The god had always seemed so… aloof and above all of that, amused by it if he even considered it at all. That he still had human desires was… strange.

His thoughts finally wound their way around to the point that he’d been avoiding. It was three months since he’d lost his last link to Jessamine and even longer since she’d died. He still loved her. He wasn’t sure that would ever go away but he knew that Jessamine wouldn’t have wanted him to… fade away. To isolate himself and be alone. He could argue that he had his daughter, thus he wasn’t alone, but he knew that was sheer sophistry. He had locked parts of himself away after Jessamine was murdered and now he had to decide whether to let them out again.

He took a sip of his wine and sighed, dragging himself out of his thoughts and focusing on what was below him. The guards were pacing through their patrol patterns with good discipline, though there were more than a few glances being given to the piles of rubble that had yet to be cleared. Emily had decreed that restoration of the city was more important than the tower and, having seen the mess out there, Corvo had backed her up on that score, even gone out himself to help where he could.

He turned his left hand over and looked at the mark on the back. The Outsider’s mark. A mark he’d accepted twice now. Once without thought and the second time knowing what it meant. Now he knew the Outsider desired him, why and what for beyond the obvious, he didn’t know. And he was apparently being given time to think about what he wanted. The only question was – what did he want?

He drank the rest of the wine down in one gulp and went back to his bed, stripping off his trousers as he went. He didn’t know what… who… he wanted but he did know he needed to sleep. Perhaps the morning would offer more insight.


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Corvo tells Emily what's going on. After a bit of reassurance, she give him her blessing. It would, after all, give her the strangest stepfather ever.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So, it looks like I'm definitely continuing this! I hope you like it.

“Father?”

Corvo snapped out his thoughts and looked up at Emily. His daughter was standing beside his chair in the council room, one hand on his shoulder and a quizzical look on her face. He glanced around and saw that the rest of the council were gone, only he and Emily remaining in the room.

“Sorry, Emily,” he said, giving his head a small shake. “I was miles away.”

Emily smiled, mischief gleaming in her eyes. “I know but you were making everyone else nervous. They all thought you were glaring at them. It made getting their agreement about the changes in Karnaca much easier.”

Corvo snorted with amusement. “I’m glad I was of help.”

Emily sobered and sat down in the chair next to his. “Is everything okay? It isn’t like you to go woolgathering.”

“I had a strange night,” Corvo admitted as he scrubbed his face with his right hand. His left was once again tightly bound to conceal the mark of the Outsider on the back of his hand, though from the look on the face of their new High Overseer, it wasn’t as much of a secret as he might have preferred.

“I didn’t hear of any disturbances,” Emily said with a frown.

Corvo reached out and patted her hand. “There weren’t any. I just… I was in the Void again.”

Emily’s eyes widened. Corvo had given her the full unadorned version of what had happened, Outsider and all. He’d felt it was her right to know, both as his daughter and his Empress.

“I thought he left you alone after it was all done last time.”

“He did. I thought it would be the same this time. He tends to only pay attention if we’re interesting.”

“What did he want?”

Corvo was surprised to feel the unexpected heat on his cheeks and from the way Emily’s eyebrow went up, so was she.

“Me, apparently,” he admitted after a long pause.

Emily gaped at him for a moment then her face closed off. “Why? Hasn’t he done enough?”

“It’s… not like that,” Corvo said. He wasn’t quite sure how you actually broached the subject of a god wanting you to your daughter. That wasn’t something he’d ever thought he’d have to do.

Emily however proved that her mind was as quick as ever and her eyes went very wide. “Oh!” She covered her mouth with her hand. Her expression was difficult to decipher when she dropped it again. “What did you say?”

“Not much,” Corvo admitted. “He always seemed so above that sort of thing.”

“But you didn’t reject him.”

Corvo sighed. “I didn’t do much of anything, Emily. To say he caught me off guard would be an understatement.”

“But you’re considering it.”

Corvo was silent for a time, his gaze fixed on the table. “I don’t know. I still love your mother. That… won’t ever go away and she could never be replaced in my heart. But I think he knows that and doesn’t mind.”

His gaze flicked over to Emily just in time to see the look of relief on her face and he smothered a sympathetic smile. He wasn’t surprised that was the first thought she had. She had lost her mother so young – too young – and nearly lost her father. This could not be any easier for her than it was for him.

“What are you going to do?”

“I don’t know,” he said with a sigh.

“Do you… do you want him?”

Corvo gave a short laugh. “I honestly have no idea, Emily. I’ve never thought about it before.”

Emily fell silent for a while then she gave him an impish look. “He’d be the strangest stepfather I could ever possibly have.”

That startled a more genuine laugh out of Corvo. “That’s an understatement.”

Emily got to her feet and placed a hand on his shoulder. “You deserve to be happy, Father. If he makes you happy, well, you have my blessing if you feel you need it.”

Corvo patted her hand and smiled slightly. “Thank you.”

He watched her walk confidently out of the room. She had learned her lessons well in the wake of Delilah’s coup, learned how her distraction and desire to be anywhere but here had allowed it all to happen right under her nose and left her encased in stone. She still had her adventures, exploring parts of the city with Wyman, but she no longer stared into space in council meetings and signed whatever was presented to her without reading it. He was even more proud of her now, if that was possible.

He sighed and got to his feet. He was still no closer to an answer as to what he wanted but he felt better now that Emily knew and given her approval of whatever his decision ended up being.


	3. Chapter 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Corvo has made his decision. The Outsider explains what motivated him. Sort of.

It had been two weeks since the Outsider had drawn him into the Void and bamboozled him so Corvo wasn’t overly surprised when he went to sleep one night and woke up to find himself standing on those familiar stone slabs with the cold wind of the Void swirling around him. For once, he didn’t greet the sight with trepidation or frustration. He simply looked around calmly then started walking forward towards the stone arch in the distance.

He was equally unsurprised when he reached to the arch to find the Outsider standing there, his hands clasped behind the back and a truly opaque expression on his face. He’d had a lot of time to think about this during the last two weeks, though after the first time, he’d refrained from doing so during Council meetings. He owed Emily his attention for those. 

He came to a halt in front of the Outsider then he gave a small huff of amusement. “I don’t know what I should call you.”

The Outsider looked surprised, as though that wasn’t quite what he was expecting to hear. His expression then became slightly hesitant. “I… have no name. If I had one before I was made into this, I do not remember it.”

The Outsider looked strangely lost for a moment and it struck Corvo how young he looked. He knew it was at least something of an illusion. The Outsider was thousands of years old. No matter what he had been when he had been sacrificed, now he was no more a boy than Corvo himself was. He reached out and cradled the Outsider’s face with his hand. The god closed his eyes and leaned into the touch with a sigh.

“Is this what you looked like when…?”

“When I became one with the Void?” the Outsider said, his eyes opening to reveal the familiar blackness. “Yes.” He paused and appeared to consider the question again. “In most part anyway.”

Corvo nodded and got the distinct impression that the Outsider did not intend to raise the subject they’d spoken about last time. That any move that was to be made had to come from him. He smiled faintly and closed the gap between them so that they were all but standing chest to chest. The Outsider was deceptively tall and they were almost the same height. There was a moment of stillness between them then Corvo leaned forward and pressed his lips against the Outsider’s.

He had the eerie feeling that the entire Void sighed and lightened slightly. The Outsider’s eyes fluttered closed and he leaned into the chaste kiss, one hand rising to rest on Corvo’s hip. The kiss stayed chaste for a moment longer then Corvo tilted the Outsider’s head slightly and the shift was enough to spark heat between them. The Outsider’s mouth opened under his and Corvo took full advantage of that as they embraced properly. Around them the Void hummed and shimmered in a way that should have frightened Corvo but didn’t.

They finally parted and for once Corvo could clearly read the emotions on the Outsider’s face – wonder and delight. The god touched his lips and an enigmatic smile curved his lips as his black eyes gleamed.

“I did not think…” The Outsider broke off and walked away a little way. He then turned to face Corvo. “When they made me into this, they took away everything I once was. Or so I thought. Soon enough I discovered that I could still feel but it was… curiousity, anger, contempt, interest. I didn’t know I could feel more. But then there was you. You interested me more than any other. You took my gift and used it well. You punished your enemies but did not seek their deaths. In fact, you sought no deaths even when there appeared initially to be no other option. You put your child empress on the throne and stepped aside, returning to your role in the shadows. I thought you no longer interesting but I found myself returning to you again and again. Watching as you lived your life.”

The Outsider turned away again and stared out into the Void, where a giant whale serenely floated past them.

“But you were still looking behind you, towards your lost Empress. I hated that but did not know why. I sought her out in the Void, hoping to understand why. I was confused and I do not like that. Then I saw the shape of things that might come but… it is not my nature to intervene. Perhaps had you thought of me, I could have drawn you here and spoken to you. But you did not.”

Corvo walked over to him and place a hand on the god’s shoulder. The Outsider tensed under his touch then relaxed and melted back into him, letting him move his hand so he could wrap his arm around his chest. The Outsider placed his hand over Corvo’s and continued.

“Then you lost your Empress again.” Amusement flowed briefly from the Outsider when Corvo growled in his ear. “Your daughter. I thought that surely this time you would seek the hearts of your enemies but once again, you did not, not even Delilah. You even rescued poor Aramis Stilton from his own folly.”

He turned in Corvo’s half-embrace. “I do not know what love is, dear Corvo. If I ever felt it before, which I do not believe I did, then it was lost. But I do know that I do not wish to lose you, to see you with another.” He paused. “But if you wished that, I would not stop you. You are too interesting for me to stop you.”

Corvo was silent as he considered all that had been said. “I am a mortal man but for as long as I live, you have me.”

The Outsider’s smile was once again enigmatic but he made no further comment. Instead he raised his head, his intent obvious, and Corvo rewarded it with the kiss he wanted. This time when they separated, the Outsider stepped back with a smile.

“We shall speak again soon,” he said. “Perhaps in a more congenial setting.”

Before Corvo could say anything, he found himself waking in his bedroom in Dunwall Tower once again.


	4. Chapter 4

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Corvo and the Outsider talk about the past and the effects it has had and then turn towards the future.

Corvo opened his eyes and immediately felt slightly disoriented. He’d gone to sleep in his bedroom in Dunwall Tower and now he was in… Karnaca? He looked around and yes, it was Karnaca. It was one of the lush public gardens in the Upper Aventa district that he remembered carousing in with his friends after he’d been assigned to serve Emperor Euhorn Kaldwin before the guards moved them on with tolerant amusement. He hadn’t been here since then, certainly not while he was pursuing Delilah’s cronies, but it was exactly as he remembered.

Except for the distinct lack of people.

He looked around and wasn’t really surprised to find the Outsider standing next to a tree, his hands clasped behind his back.

“Do you like it, dear Corvo?”

“This is… the Void?”

The Outsider smiled faintly and walked towards him. “This is Karnaca, dear Corvo.”

Corvo looked confused for a moment but then the Outsider was standing in front of him. The god was very still for a moment then he leaned in. Corvo reached for him and pulled him into an embrace.

“This okay?”

The Outsider nodded, his arms slowly rising to wrap around Corvo. They stayed like that for a while, simply holding each other as the trees rustled in the light breeze and birds chirped around them. Corvo hadn’t felt a peace like this for a long while and he sighed, feeling some of the weight on his shoulders drift away at least for a little while.

“Last time I was here, I was eighteen,” he said quietly. “I’d just found out I was to be sent to Dunwall.”

The Outsider was silent for a moment then he pulled back enough to look Corvo in the face. “Did you resent it? Being sent off like a prize to the Emperor and his daughter?”

Corvo chuckled. “No. I didn’t see it that way. It was an opportunity of a life time. Duke Theodanis was a good man. I had no reason to distrust him.”

“His son languishes under the good doctor’s care.” The Outsider sounded decidedly amused and Corvo found out why when he continued. “He is all but convinced now that he is lying, that he isn’t Duke Luca Abele.”

Corvo snorted. “How is that possible?”

“Do you think a man who does what he did is entirely sane?”

Corvo was silent for a moment. “Did Delilah help with that?”

The Outsider arched an eyebrow. “Does it matter?”

“I suppose not,” Corvo replied.

“Do you regret the choice you made?”

“No,” Corvo said with a shake of his head. “The new Duke is a good man who cares about the people of Karnaca. He’ll do well by them. And…” He paused and smiled faintly as he remembered the man’s words to him in the palace. “He won’t be afraid to tell Emily if something is wrong or needs to be done.” His smile solidified a bit more. “I don’t think he realises that Aramis Stilton knows what was done but I’ll leave that up to Stilton whether or not he tells him.”

“I did not expect you to grasp that you could save Aramis Stilton from his folly,” the Outsider said.

“I wasn’t sure that it would,” Corvo replied. “But it seemed logical that if he was unconscious and hidden that Duke Luca would go ahead regardless. The ritual was more important than one uncertain ally.”

The Outsider looked amused. “So many months and years of work from Delilah and her cronies and you undid it all in a matter of weeks.”

“Isn’t that what makes me interesting?” Corvo said dryly.

“At first, perhaps,” the Outsider replied. “When you were in Dunwall, seeking revenge for your Empress. This time… I could not say. I expected your anger to come to the fore and make you… less interesting.”

Corvo snorted. “When did I say I wasn’t angry?”

The Outsider cocked his head slightly then he smiled slightly. “Ah. Your anger is like an assassin’s blade. Thin, cold, impersonal and very subtle. Sliding between another’s ribs before they know you are there.”

“Jessamine never approved of killing,” Corvo said as though that explained everything then he gave a mirthless laugh. “Besides, death is quick and painless and leaves nothing but the Void in its wake.”

“You wanted them to suffer.”

Corvo was silent for a time. “Yes.”

“They did not count on the manner of your anger.”

“Maybe it makes me a bad person,” Corvo said. “To do what I did to them but I have no regrets. They knew I was dangerous. It was why they made the plans they did. They just didn’t realise how dangerous I was.” He paused and gave a soft huff of laughter. “And they didn’t anticipate your interest in me and what that would mean.”

“You did not tell them.” It wasn’t a question. They both knew the Outsider had been watching his progress both times. “Why not?”

Corvo was silent but his arms tightened around the Outsider. “You gave me Jessamine’s heart. Any explanation of what the Mark meant was eventually going to come round to that and that was a discussion I did not want to have with anyone. I was getting the job done. That was all that they needed to know. And once they betrayed me, it was for the best that they didn’t know what I was capable of.”

“You resent me for using her heart.” Again it wasn’t quite a question nor what it entirely a statement.

“Not anymore,” Corvo replied. “I did at first. To hear her voice and have it constantly remind that I failed her? That was an exquisite agony and I resented you for it.”

“But not now.” The Outsider was holding himself still and seemed somehow smaller.

Corvo sighed. “No, not now. She is gone. Truly gone. Clinging to that ephemeral part of her… she would not have liked that. She would always have wanted me to be happy. Emily and I.”

“And are you?”

Corvo looked at the Outsider as he considered that question. It wasn’t one he’d thought about much over the years. Duty and responsibility had always been something he’d considered more important that his own happiness and he recognised now that some of the reason for that had been because of Emily’s… distraction. He’d allowed her that distraction and picked up the slack she’d left in her wake. But he’d done a poor job of it because it wasn’t something he was trained for or even suited for. And thus they’d both been blindsided by Delilah and Duke Luca Abele.

But now? Now Emily had taken up the reins in full, refusing to be distracted, having seen the consequences. Having _experienced_ the consequences. And knowing what Corvo had been forced to do because of it. He had been able to step back into his true place. Behind the throne, behind the Empress, a shadowy figure who moved in silence and worked in darkness. A place that allowed him the occasional moment of woolgathering in meetings where before he would have had to be paying attention. A place that allowed him to examine not what he had but what he was lacking.

“I think I will be,” he said. 

The Outsider seemed to understand what he meant by that. “It has been a long time.”

“Yes.”

A comfortable silence fell over them as they stood there, wrapped up in each other’s arms. It was odd in some ways. Corvo had had his fun in his youth, before he’d gone to Dunwall, but once there, his duty had consumed him and whatever time he’d had left had gone to Jessamine and with her intelligence and wit and beauty and soft curves, he had not needed or wanted more. Thus it had been a long time since he had held a man in his arms like this. 

“Why Karnaca?” he asked.

The Outsider raised an eyebrow at the question. “It is your home.”

Corvo paused. “It was. Perhaps in some ways it always will be but my home… my home is with Emily and…” He looked at the Outsider. “With you.”

The Outsider’s smile was small and surprised, almost fragile in a strange way. Karnaca shimmered around them and Corvo couldn’t tell whether it was a case of the illusion shattering to reveal what was behind it all the time or whether they had moved from Karnaca back to the Void. Either way, the grey strangeness of the Void surrounded them and Corvo was amused to find himself more comfortable there than where they had been.

“Even here?” the Outsider asked.

Corvo nodded. “Even here.”

The Outsiders’ laugh was young and bright and it rang through the Void like the delicate shimmer of a bell. “Come then, dear Corvo. Let me show you _my_ home.”

Corvo took the Outsider’s hand without hesitation and let himself be drawn into the Void.


	5. Chapter 5

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Corvo has an interesting conversation with the new High Overseer.

“Lord Protector.”

Corvo had been aware of the person approaching him as he stood on one of the side balconies overlooking the main foyer. He had been observing the work of the cleaning crews and also making himself… available for the man who had just spoken. He’d known this conversation was coming and he’d wanted to approach it on his own terms rather than be ambushed.

“High Overseer,” he said with a small nod, not turning towards the man.

The short, somewhat surprised silence that greeted his words made him smile briefly. He had heard the man approaching from the moment he’d opened the door and when he’d gotten closer, he’d been able to identify the High Overseer from the sound of his tread. The man had the slightest limp that made him distinctive. But Jaysen Callaghan did not need to know that and this would add to Corvo’s reputation.

“It is good to see the Tower being set to rights in full,” the High Overseer finally said, coming to stand beside Corvo.

“The city was the priority but yes,” Corvo replied. “Ridding this place of the last traces of Delilah and her witches is a good thing.”

He felt the High Overseer’s steady gaze on him but he continued to watch the cleaning crews. He could make this easier but he wanted to see what the High Overseer would say. Callaghan was new to both Dunwall and the rank of High Overseer and he wanted to see what measure of man they had been saddled with. His relationship with the previous High Overseer had been… tense, the rumours of what he had done during the battle to place Emily on the throne creating an insurmountable barrier between them.

“The painting of Delilah…” 

The High Overseer’s tone was delicate and hesitant and Corvo smiled in response.

“That was Emily’s decision,” he said firmly. “I would set fire to it if it were my choice but Emily wants a…. reminder of the consequences of not paying attention.”

“I see.” The High Overseer paused for a moment. “Lord Protector…”

“Would you like some wine?” Corvo asked.

The High Overseer looked momentarily annoyed at the interruption then the door to the balcony opened and a maid came through with her mop and bucket and started working. The High Overseer glanced at her then back at Corvo.

“I… yes, thank you.”

Corvo ushered the man up to his rooms high above the foyer. He poured them both some wine then gestured for the man to sit. He sat and took a sip of his own wine before raising an eyebrow at the High Overseer.

“You were saying?”

The man smiled thinly then gestured towards Corvo’s left hand, which was resting lightly on the arm of the chair. “If I asked you to remove the coverings on your hand, what would I see?”

Corvo returned that thin smile with one of his own. “I think you already know the answer to your own question.”

The High Overseer took a sip of his wine, his eyes wary and tired. “When the Overseers tried to storm the Tower, Delilah and her witches wiped them out. Nothing could stop them. Yet you did.”

“I wasn’t trying to storm the Tower,” Corvo said dryly. “Not something one man can do.”

“You know what I’m talking about.”

Corvo shook his head. “If I had tried that tactic, I would have died as quickly as your Overseers. Stealth has always been my greatest weapon.”

“Just stealth?” the High Overseer said archly.

“It was what I was trained in,” Corvo said evenly. “A personal bodyguard has more cause for concern about an assassin in the arras than a frontal assault.”

The High Overseer simply watched him for a long moment as he sipped at his wine. Finally he sighed and set the glass aside. He steepled his fingers and let his guard drop, looking weary.

“I am a pragmatic man, Lord Corvo.” He gave a faint wry smile. “Unusual in an Overseer, let alone the High Overseer, I know. But it was why I was chosen for this job over all the other candidates.” He sighed again. “We faced a foe that we were supposed to be able to defeat but failed. Rather miserably too, I might add. And unlike your daughter, Delilah’s… defeat has not returned my Overseers to life. And yet you… you systematically dismantled Delilah’s support base with a ruthlessness I can honestly only admire.”

The High Overseer paused and his eyes dropped to Corvo’s left hand. “And with the aid of one I am supposed to denounce and despise.”

Corvo hesitated for a moment then he set aside his own glass and in a slow careful move, removed the wrappings from around his left hand, leaving the Outsider’s Mark on stark display. The High Overseer leaned forward and with a glance to gain permission, he gently took Corvo’s hand in his and examined the Mark.

“I have seen it before,” the High Overseer murmured. “Painted here and there and once, like this, on the hand of a man who disappeared with an alacrity I have only seen from you. We think of the Outsider as evil but I… I am beginning to suspect that is not entirely accurate. Those bearing his Mark have done evil, to be sure, but…” He looked up at Corvo. “Not all have.”

Corvo was silent for a moment. “It would be better to say that the gifts he gives are a double-edged sword. They reveal a path that is… shadowed and easy but it is entirely your choice whether or not you walk down that path. I chose not to.” He smiled grimly. “No matter how sorely I was tempted.”

The High Overseer raised an eyebrow and Corvo snorted.

“My… my lover and my daughter, Callaghan,” he said shortly. “That was who I was fighting on behalf of and I have never claimed to not have a temper.”

“And yet you refrained. Both times.”

“Death was too good for them,” Corvo growled. “They murdered Jessamine and kidnapped my daughter. As for Delilah and her cronies…”

The High Overseer nodded and eyed him speculatively. “And what precisely did you do to Duke Luca Abele? Overseer Byrne reports he is a changed man.”

Corvo snorted and looked amused. “He is but this goes no further than this room. The number of people who know the truth is so small that if it gets out, I will know who has spoken.” He waited until the High Overseer indicated his acceptance. “The Duke is actually the Duke’s body double.”

Callaghan looked surprised. “I see. And the real Duke?”

“In Addermire Institute,” Corvo replied. “Slowly being convinced that he’s the imposter.”

“I feel I should protest that.” The High Overseer sighed. “But Byrne has been quite plain that the new Duke is doing so well and Duke Luca did so poorly that… I will keep my silence.” He drew in a breath then let it out. “I cannot be seen to endorse your…” He gestured toward Corvo’s hand. “Choice. But nor will I condemn you for it.”

Corvo arched an eyebrow. “That’s an unusual response from a High Overseer.”

Callaghan gave another of those thin smiles. “Dogmatic blindness didn’t do us much good against Delilah. And I wasn’t assigned here because I was close-minded. The Abbey of the Everyman has been… aware of your… alliance. They have chosen to look the other way for political expedience and because the fall of not only the traitors but also the conspirators after they turned on you is surely a salutary lesson for all.”

The man’s wry humour on that last comment drew a short laugh out of Corvo.

“An equally unusual response from a High Overseer,” he said. “But I see no reason to flaunt my… choice, as you put it. I didn’t before, I won’t now. Not my style.”

Callaghan nodded and finished his wine. “Then I believe we understand each other.” He stood and offered his hand to Corvo, who paused for a moment before standing and grasping it. “I see no reason why we cannot work together to restore Dunwall to prosperity.”

Corvo inclined his head. “I look forward to working with you, High Overseer.”

Callaghan gave him another nod then headed for the door. Corvo watched him go and somehow wasn’t surprised when he felt a familiar presence in the room.

“Interesting.”

“No wonder it drew you like a bee to honey,” Corvo said dryly as he turned to face the Outsider.

A faint smile flickered over the Outsider’s lips. “He believes what he has told you.”

Something relaxed within Corvo and from the gleam in the Outsider’s eyes that reassurance was precisely the purpose behind those words. He picked up the wrapping he’d discarded earlier and bound his hand again with deft experienced motions, concealing the mark on the back.

“Do the rest of his brethren believe the same?”

“No,” the Outsider said, watching his movements with interest. “But they will abide by what he says. For now.”

Corvo grunted. That was no great surprise. He’d always figured that the only reason he’d been left alone in the past was the fear that he might turn his formidable talents on the Abbey if they threatened him. He knew it had been noted by the Overseers that his foray into the Abbey after Jessamine’s death had _only_ resulted in the former High Overseer Campbell being branded a heretic instead of the bloodbath it could have been. His forbearance had earned some reciprocation but he’d never doubted that he made the Overseers _very_ nervous.

“He and the others will not be permitted to harm you,” the Outsider said, breaking into his thoughts. Corvo didn’t miss the dark thread running through the god’s voice.

He walked over and drew the Outsider close. “They won’t. Not if I don’t give them a reason. And why would I do that? I am merely the Empress’ bodyguard.”

The look the Outsider gave him was unfathomable but then he laughed, an unearthly sound that Corvo liked but that never failed to send shiver up his spine.

“Merely the Empress’ bodyguard?”

“And your… yours,” Corvo said with an idle shrug.

“ _Yes_.” 

The word almost echoed with smug possessiveness then the Outsider tilted his head in a silent request. Corvo chuckled and leaned in to kiss him, putting the conversation with Callaghan out of his mind. He would discuss it with Emily later but for now, he had better things to do.


End file.
